I figured it was time to start a thread for Spring Training happenings. You can almost smell the fresh cut grass!(BTW - Did anybody notice the "Player Acquisition Targets" thread got far more replies and views the the one for the entire official 2011 season thread? I'm not sure what that means.)

My concern over this spring training is that we have an unusual amount of NRI and STI's. We only have so many spring training games and the first priority is to get the regulars ready. I'm sure there will be "B" games scheduled. But this year I think we can almost field an entire squad of STI's. Some players, plobobly many players, are not going to get a real fair chance. Well, nobody said baseball is fair. I just hope we have a "daily B game".

The interest level in baseball as represented by the Target Thread does show the undercurrent of support for the Indians and the fan base.. a very good sign..

The start of spring training begins with the club pretty well set with at least 19 to 20 of the 25 roster spots.. Manny may look at this as a chance to give his regulars a slow start in spring followed by ramping up as opening day starts. The guys on the "bubble", on the other hand, have to come to camp raring to go so they can get on the fast track. If they're not performing, they'll find less and less chances as camp proceeds.

Areas that should be considered battle grounds:

First BaseThird BaseUtility InfielderFourth OutfielderFifth man in the rotationSeventh man in the pen

There are lots of candidates for each of these spots.. so, let the games within the games begin !!...

Now is the Winter of our Discontent made Glorious Summer by these Sons of Cuyahoga.

Living in Georgia now but I remember the endless winters in Toledo as a boy. So when my Dad told me one February that winter was almost over because Spring Training had started, every year after that Spring Training meant the end of winter. Even after I moved to Florida as a kid it still cheered me up.

I think it will be an interesting battle to see how the final bench spot is filled.The more I look at it, I come to doubt Chis makes the team out of spring training. I also think that Shelly Duncan better be ready to go to war on a daily basis. Spilbroughs and Canzler will be making a push and I think position versatility will play a HUGE role on who gets kept.

1 other factor is who is already on the 40 man. Some of these various arms and spring training invites are not on the 40 man and if they are to get onto the club for opening day, then somehow they have to get added (and those spots from the 60 day DL usage will get taken quick).

Too bad if true. I realize he might not be ready be the start of the season, but vet SP are always useful.

The only information that's been posted that I could find said the following:

"...The two sides agreed to a minor league contract least week but as of Sunday final details of the deal were still being worked out.Garland was expected to have a physical Monday in Arizona. That appears unlikely now and no update on his status is expected until later in the week..."

Too bad if true. I realize he might not be ready be the start of the season, but vet SP are always useful.

The only information that's been posted that I could find said the following:

"...The two sides agreed to a minor league contract least week but as of Sunday final details of the deal were still being worked out.Garland was expected to have a physical Monday in Arizona. That appears unlikely now and no update on his status is expected until later in the week..."

One of the early observations from Goodyear Park is a photo of Asdrubal Cabrera doing some running with the comments: "Maybe a long term extension wasn't a great idea..", "Looks like Asdrubal spent the winter at the Miggy Cabrera Training Complex..", "Looks like he ate Miggy.."

GeronimoSon wrote:One of the early observations from Goodyear Park is a photo of Asdrubal Cabrera doing some running with the comments: "Maybe a long term extension wasn't a great idea..", "Looks like Asdrubal spent the winter at the Miggy Cabrera Training Complex..", "Looks like he ate Miggy.."

No doubt about it.. Asdrubal looks a bit portly in the photo...

They were saying the same thing about Chipper Jones on the radio this morning......new meaning to Fat Tuesday

The interest level in baseball as represented by the Target Thread does show the undercurrent of support for the Indians and the fan base.. a very good sign..

The start of spring training begins with the club pretty well set with at least 19 to 20 of the 25 roster spots.. Manny may look at this as a chance to give his regulars a slow start in spring followed by ramping up as opening day starts. The guys on the "bubble", on the other hand, have to come to camp raring to go so they can get on the fast track. If they're not performing, they'll find less and less chances as camp proceeds.

Areas that should be considered battle grounds:

First BaseThird BaseUtility InfielderFourth OutfielderFifth man in the rotationSeventh man in the pen

There are lots of candidates for each of these spots.. so, let the games within the games begin !!...

Agree except for here. Kotchman is the 1B unless hurt. Really has no competition. 2B and the even LF are more of a battleground position.

GeronimoSon wrote:One of the early observations from Goodyear Park is a photo of Asdrubal Cabrera doing some running with the comments: "Maybe a long term extension wasn't a great idea..", "Looks like Asdrubal spent the winter at the Miggy Cabrera Training Complex..", "Looks like he ate Miggy.."

No doubt about it.. Asdrubal looks a bit portly in the photo...

This is a big worry with Cabrera. He did the same thing prior to the 2010 season coming in out of shape and struggled even before the injury.

Manny Acta has already said something newsworthy in Goodyear. Apparently, Carlos Santana will be the DH when he is not catching. That put's a crimp in some of the lineups we have been penciling in. Most of us thought Carlos would be at 1B against LHP.

That tells me a couple of things.1. Manny values Kotchman's defense at 1B very highly. If he is as good as advertised, he may be able to save 1 out about every 2 games. If he can, that would be huge for the pitching staff.2. Manny may also be getting us ready for "life after Hafner". Pronk has gone from originally a slugging 1B, to a DH only, to a DH only that can only produce vs. RHP only. If we fall out of contention, he could be a trade candidate by mid-season.

GhostofTedCox wrote:Manny Acta has already said something newsworthy in Goodyear. Apparently, Carlos Santana will be the DH when he is not catching. That put's a crimp in some of the lineups we have been penciling in. Most of us thought Carlos would be at 1B against LHP.

That tells me a couple of things.1. Manny values Kotchman's defense at 1B very highly. If he is as good as advertised, he may be able to save 1 out about every 2 games. If he can, that would be huge for the pitching staff.2. Manny may also be getting us ready for "life after Hafner". Pronk has gone from originally a slugging 1B, to a DH only, to a DH only that can only produce vs. RHP only. If we fall out of contention, he could be a trade candidate by mid-season.

-A good move to keep Carlos FOCUSED on being a catcher.. The downside would be for a single game.. If Santana is the DH that day & Marson is catching and is injured.. the Indians lose the DH for that day.. oh well.. -Life after PRONK is a chapter that has yet to be written.. -Kotchman's defense around 1B (saving 1/2 run a game).. seems like hyperbole..

GhostofTedCox wrote:That tells me a couple of things.1. Manny values Kotchman's defense at 1B very highly. If he is as good as advertised, he may be able to save 1 out about every 2 games. If he can, that would be huge for the pitching staff.

Kotchman's defense is good but not great. More dependable than slick. Good at scooping poor throws but less on taking away doubles down the line.

Actually looking forward to seeing how Lowe does for the Tribe, as I'm sure everyone is. He's not here to win 20 games but he's certainly capable of putting forth a solid season. Still likely he's not even a moderate upgrade over "Fausto" Heredia. Time will tell I suppose

Actually looking forward to seeing how Lowe does for the Tribe, as I'm sure everyone is. He's not here to win 20 games but he's certainly capable of putting forth a solid season. Still likely he's not even a moderate upgrade over "Fausto" Heredia. Time will tell I suppose

I watched Lowe a lot last year. He can still get guys out at the ML level. Last year he would breeze through 3 or 4 innings then suddenly lose it. Usually sinker ball guys get better as the game progresses but not last year for Derek. Some of his issues could have resulted from his DUI arrest (which was dismissed) but a change of scenery may help him and he's in a contract year (which he has excelled with during the past). He could be a solid #4/#3 and at worst a #5.

Edible14 wrote:Well, he was DFA'd and the Rangers had an open spot. I'm guessing this was one of those "we're claiming him, but to avoid a hassle we'll call this a trade" scenarios.

Yep.

Whenever you see a guy that was DFAed get traded for "cash considerations", 99 times out of 100 it is because the team that DFAed the player was fielding calls from teams interested in trading for the player, which is a tell tale sign he would not clear waivers when put on (DFAed played are not immediately put on waivers). So, the Indians knew De La Cruz would not clear waivers so it is simply a move to avoid paying the waiver fee and get some money. Teams do this all the time. He had little value in a trade, but rather than just letting him get claimed they were able to trade him and save (make) some money.

I'm not gonna say I predicted this, because I didn't....but I did expect it. This is why all the OF's were brought in on spring invites. Cunningham and Spilborghs both stand to gain from this IMO. Can always throw Shelley Duncan out there once or twice a week with Brantley possibly and likely taking over center a majority of the time.

Pencil in Brantley as your CF for the forseeable future. A platoon sort of deal with Duncan/Cunningham in LF. With that said - Donald maybe yr opening day CF? Agree with most the Spilborghs (assuming Grady is DL'd) could really be the one to captialize now. Will be surprised if Brantley is not the guy, maybe a trade (unlikely) but with spring training about to start could not ask for a better time to give Donald looks at CF/OF.

E.Z - Pie Crowe are our best other CF options. With EZ by far the leader of the pack.

If they are serious about giving Donald time in the outfield, then I think the Sizemore injury could possibly open the door for Lopez or Guzman. If they decide to keep Donald as a utility infielder, then it is pretty wide open.

Hey guys, it's Grady! If you were not prepared for the possibility, even the likelihood, that this would happen then your optimism is off the charts. The best thing that can probably be said is the the Tribe will likely only waste $5M on Sizemore than $9M. Sure wish the Indians had spent $1M on Fukudome rather than Sizemore. But I understand why even if I wasn't in favor. Maybe we can hope he will be back better than ever. Not sure I could pick a replacement all that intelligently right now. Really should let the competition of ST make that choice. Unless he comes apart in ST, seems like Cunningham is probably on the 25. Zeke could probably compete defensively with Cunningham and maybe they platoon. Tough choices!

indianinkslinger wrote:Hey guys, it's Grady! If you were not prepared for the possibility, even the likelihood, that this would happen then your optimism is off the charts. The best thing that can probably be said is the the Tribe will likely only waste $5M on Sizemore than $9M. Sure wish the Indians had spent $1M on Fukudome rather than Sizemore. But I understand why even if I wasn't in favor. Maybe we can hope he will be back better than ever. Not sure I could pick a replacement all that intelligently right now. Really should let the competition of ST make that choice. Unless he comes apart in ST, seems like Cunningham is probably on the 25. Zeke could probably compete defensively with Cunningham and maybe they platoon. Tough choices!

I'm hoping that Shelley Duncan gets a shot at the regular LF job. I'd like to see what he could do with regular PT.

..Indians pitcher Derek Lowe has strong interest in returning to the Red Sox after this season as a starter or reliever. Cafardo writes that the veteran could have been an interesting solution as the BoSox's fourth or fifth starter, but picking up a large chunk his salary from the Braves didn't interest Boston..

Why would a pitcher on the Indians make a comment like this to Cafardo?.. strong interest?.. WTF?...

How can a professional athlete (C. Perez) injure himself in the first bullpen session of the year? The trainer said Perez wasn't "ready for the intensity" of the bullpen session. It was the infamous oblique muscle. The Indians reportedly studied that injury after last season.

You would think with all the injuries last season the Indians would issue everybody an off season conditioning program. As a reward to Perez, I think the Indians should give his job to Pestano and let him run with it.

(BTW - I've lost all the avatars on the new forum. Do I need to change a setting? Or is this a bug that will correct itself.)

..Indians pitcher Derek Lowe has strong interest in returning to the Red Sox after this season as a starter or reliever. Cafardo writes that the veteran could have been an interesting solution as the BoSox's fourth or fifth starter, but picking up a large chunk his salary from the Braves didn't interest Boston..

Why would a pitcher on the Indians make a comment like this to Cafardo?.. strong interest?.. WTF?...

I doubt that if anything was said it was more along the lines of "Yes, I'd play in Boston again"

Cafardo has a habbit of naming random former Red Sox as "likely trade targets" whenever the Sox have a need to fill. He's named Justin Masterson at least 4 times as a target the Sox have in mind since he was dealt to the Indians.

GhostofTedCox wrote:How can a professional athlete (C. Perez) injure himself in the first bullpen session of the year? The trainer said Perez wasn't "ready for the intensity" of the bullpen session. It was the infamous oblique muscle. The Indians reportedly studied that injury after last season.

You would think with all the injuries last season the Indians would issue everybody an off season conditioning program. As a reward to Perez, I think the Indians should give his job to Pestano and let him run with it.

Anyone can get injured at anytime, that statement by Soloff is just retarded. Pestano can sneeze tomorrow and pull a muscle in his back and strain his ribcage.

GhostofTedCox wrote:How can a professional athlete (C. Perez) injure himself in the first bullpen session of the year? The trainer said Perez wasn't "ready for the intensity" of the bullpen session. It was the infamous oblique muscle. The Indians reportedly studied that injury after last season.

You would think with all the injuries last season the Indians would issue everybody an off season conditioning program. As a reward to Perez, I think the Indians should give his job to Pestano and let him run with it.

(BTW - I've lost all the avatars on the new forum. Do I need to change a setting? Or is this a bug that will correct itself.)

Basically, in a bullpen session Perez was supposed to be going 50-75 percent, he went 100 percent.. there being the problem. I played baseball a number of years and trained the same way. If your body isn't accustomed to the riggers of baseball for a few months, you can easily pull something if you try going full stride in your first few workouts.

That said, at least he's not Joel Zumaya... thew 13 pitches in his first bullpen session and tore his UCL.. Tommy John surgery upcoming.

Sizemore's injury will keep Chris Antonetti involved in the trade market. This team still needs an impact RH hitter with intangilbles to play the OF. Although, if Swisher could be pried away from the Yankees, he's works well. Using these fill players we signed over the winter as regulars doesn't match up with the philosophy of getting to the playoffs. The players being mentioned here are role players at best.

We may not get the player before spring training, but we will get a bat by the deadline.

A.Zajac wrote:That said, at least he's not Joel Zumaya... thew 13 pitches in his first bullpen session and tore his UCL.. Tommy John surgery upcoming.

Fark had a headline about Zumaya last year that went "For approximately the fourth time in Joel Zumaya's career we learn the human arm is not intended to throw 102 mph regularly". I guess make that fifth time.

It blows my mind that a professional major league pitcher would show up for spring training, not having pitched in winter ball, and start throwing 100% on the first day. Perez is an idiot. He stated that throwing at 75% is a waste of his time. Well, what do you call taking 4-6 weeks off because he went out too hard too fast?

Hopefully, he won't re-injure it coming back too early. These oblique injuries are like hammies - easy to re-injure if you're not patient enough.

The good news is we get to see what Vinnie can do as a closer if CP isn't ready by Opening Day.

I just saw a video of a press conference from Goodyear with Carlos Baerga. I loved this guy, and I hope the Indians are able to add him to the staff. Baerga enjoyed the game and played that way. He also understood the game. How many times did we see him just stick out his bat and flair a ball to the OF. Those of you too young to remember, you missed one hell of a ballplayer. His career was short, and he may be responsible for that, but he was the heart of the Indians in the early 90's.

I'm glad the Indians are bringing back him, as well as Lofton and Hargrove for ST. I hear they're even working on Albert Belle. Good luck with that.)

Best comment of the spring (so far) as it relates to the two injured Tribesmen:

Manny Acta: "...“We’re thinking about shutting down camp and taking a three-week vacation”...

Regarding the oblique strain.. they happen.. To claim it's because of aggressiveness or whatever, then answer the question: Why didn't it happen last year?. or the year before? or the year before that?.. CP stated that the way he prepared this year was the same as every other year..

I will be going to Spring Training this year - March 9-13, 1st year I have never gone before and am pretty excited. Living on the west coast makes it hard enough to see the Indians let alone any of the minor league teams. I will probably be here and there but mainly checking out the Indians teams, I hope to see Ronny Rod and Aguilar in particular. So if anyone if anyone else heads out or has some sagely advice let me know.

Indians annouced a press conference to update status of Grady Sizemore....does not sound good. Matt Underwood spoke on STO today that he believes Grady has been dealing with a back issue for sometime, which makes you wonder.

The fact that they're holding the conference brings up a lot of scenarios, surgery or even retirement (doubtful)...my personal belief is he's heading to back surgery and as someone who's had back surgery for spinal stenosis, I fear Grady's career is in fact finished.